Journey to the PrideLands
by MagicalMysterySubmarine
Summary: When Kiara and Kovu's son wanders off, he ends up getting lost.  With the help of a new friend, he is taken to a stranger Pride.  But as the years pass, he realizes he must go back.  What he doesn't know is, it won't be as easy as he thought.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys :) **

**I have always been a huge fan of the Lion King, and therefore decided to write a fanfic about it. This is technically my second story on here, but I like to consider it as my first since I never finished the other one. I hope you enjoy it! (I do not own anyyyy of the Lion King characters mentionned in this story, but I do own Nuru and the members of the stranger Pride.)**

JOURNEY TO THE PRIDELANDS

The first rays of the morning sun pierced through the sky, giving life to the beautiful Pridelands. Kovu yawned as he felt a gentle breeze ruffle his dark mane. He stretched before gently nudging Kiara awake. The lioness opened her eyes slowly. "Rise and shine!" greeted the male lion, smiling at the princess. Kiara smiled back. The two slowly walked out of the cave where the rest of the lionesses were still sound asleep.

At the peak of Pride Rock stood the King and Queen, gazing upon the sunbathed lands. Noticing Kovu and her daughter, Nala smiled warmly. "Good morning, you two, " she greeted. "'Morning," answered Kiara, approaching her parents. "Is Nuru still sleeping?" asked Simba, who turned around to face the young couple. "I guess so," answered Kovu. "He's not much of a morning lion." The King laughed at the answer. "Well he surely didn't get that from me," he replied. "I was usually the one to wake up my parents when I was a cub."Kiara and Kovu shared a smile.

Nala stepped away from the peak to climb off the rock. She looked up at her daughter. "You ready for some hunting, Kiara?" The princess nodded. "Sure am!" She followed the Queen. The two lionesses walked away from Pride Rock as the two male lions looked down on them. "Well, I better go find Zazu for the morning report," added Simba before walking away as well. Kovu nodded and stepped toward the peak of the rock. The view was amazing. He sighed while admiring the beautiful lands.

"Daddy!" cried a small voice. A caramel-colored cub was walking out of the cave. He started trotting toward the lion. "Daddy!" he repeated, as he sat next to his father. Kovu smiled, not paying attention. "DADDY!" He headbutted his dad's foreleg, causing him to fall backwards. "Good morning, Nuru!" greeted Kovu, giggling. The cub grunted as he tried to get back up. He had a small black tuft on his head and orange eyes, just like Simba. "Dad, where is mom going?" he asked, looking up at his father "She is going hunting with Nala," Kovu replied. "Can I go hunting too?" Nuru was on his feet now. Kovu looked at his son. "No, Nuru. That time has not come yet," he simply replied. "And when will that be," the cub asked, slightly dissapointed. "Not now, son. Not before a while. Hunting is too dangerous for a young cub like you." Nuru's ears dropped. Noticing his son's mood, Kovu slightly pushed him, causing a second disbalance. "Daddy!" giggled the cub.

Kovu stared off in the distance. "Your mom and I will become King and Queen someday. And then, do you know who's going to be the next in line?" Nuru looked up at him. "Who?" The dark lion replied, "You, Nuru. This will all be yours one day. And then you will be able to go hunting whenever you like. But you've got to have patience. If you rush things too much, things might not end up the way you'd want them too." The cub tilted his head, which made Kovu giggle. "You'll understand someday." The father returned to the cave, leaving Nuru at the peak of Pride Rock. The cub sighed. "I hate waiting." He plopped down, gazing upon the PrideLands.

**Okay, so not much action going on in this first chapter. The word Nuru meant Light in Swahili (at least that's what the translating website told me, lol) and I thought it would be a cute name for Kiara and Kovu's cub. The couple isn't King and Queen yet since I really didn't want to eliminate Simba and Nala right away. So what's gonna happeeeeeen? Stay tuned for the second chapter, coming riiiight up!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Second Chapter People! Hope you guys like this story so far! **

****The next morning, Nuru woke up before sunrise. The lions were all still asleep, so the plan could work perfectly. However, Kiara had her paw over him, which made it difficult to escape. The cub tried to move her paw in the most gentle way possible. When he finally managed to free himself, he turned around to make sure no one noticed. His parents' eyes were still shut. "Perfect," he thought to himself. He slowly backed up, making his way out of the cave. He took a last glance at the sleeping lions before climbing off Pride Rock. He felt his heart pounding as he ran away from his home for the first time. He felt the grass poke his paws and the slight breeze caress his face. He would prove he was ready. He would make his father proud.

The sun was slowly rising, giving the lands a pleasant shade of orange. From the distance, Nuru could percieve a pack of Antelopes slowly grazing the grass. He knew this was his chance. He crouched and took a deep breath. "Watch out, 'cause here I come!" He jumped out of his hiding spot and pounced toward the pack, causing the animals to scatter in surprise. Nuru started chasing them, determined. "This is it," he thought. He focused on one Antelope. "You're mine!" He kept eyeing it, fastening his pace. He kept running. He was going so fast he couldn't believe it himself. The animal was getting farther and farther away, but the cub wasn't ready to give up. As his breath grew weaker, he finally decided to halt. The alarmed Antelope dissapeared in the distance. The cub took a few moments to rest, and began searching for a new group of animals he could chase.

As he began running in a different direction, his legs started to ache. No animals were in sight, and he began to feel extremely thirsty. He stopped, looking around. As he didn't recognize any of his surroundings, he began to panick. He panted heavily. Nothing seemed familiar here.

"Who are you?" a female voice called.

**My chapters are shoooort :( but keep reading, the story's only begun :) **


	3. Chapter 3

**Who's ready for chapter 3? :) Are you guys wondering who that female voice was? It's all revealed RIGHT HERE! **

****Nuru jumped in surprise as he turned around. A cub about his age was standing in front of him. She was light gray and had a small tuft on her head, which was unusual for a female lion. She had a white underbelly and her eyes were a piercing ice-blue. "Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" she went on, tilting her head. Nuru didn't answer. She continued. "My name's Malaika. But most people just call me Aika for short. What's yours?" "My name's... Nuru..." the caramel cub replied shyly. "That's a funny name!" the female answered, giggling. Remembering his thirst, Nuru looked around. "I need water..."

Aika motionned him to follow her as she lead him to a river. The water was streaming from a small waterfall. He began to lap up the water. "Wow, you sure were thirsty," the female commented, "keep some for the rest of us!" Nuru stopped drinking and stepped up to the gray cub in an intimidating manner. "For your information, I am Simba's grandson, and I will be your King someday. I should be able to drink all the water I want!" Aika backed off. "Who?" she asked, still shocked from the unexpected reaction. "Simba, the King?" answered Nuru, uncertain. The female giggled and shook her head. "The King here is my dad, silly!" The caramel cub's eyes widened. "We're... we're not in the Pridelands anymore?" Realizing his fate, he panicked. He started running everywhich way, but he didn't remember where he came from. Malaika approached him confidently. "Come with me, maybe my dad will know what to do." The male cub nodded, worried.

"Our cave is next to that big rock over there," the girl said, motioning toward a large rock overflowing the river. She started trotting toward her home, followed by a worried Nuru. The sun was high in the sky by the time the two reached their destination. "We're here!" announced Malaika proudly.

Nuru gulped nervously. He has never seen a King other than Simba before, and that scared him. "Stay here." Aika left him on the rock to go toward the cave. The male cub stood alone and took a glance at the view. It was wonderful. He has never seen anything like it before. Trees were abundant, and wild flowers decorated the surroundings. The waterfall and the river were complimenting the sight, flowing underneath the platform on which he was standing.

"What is it, my boy?" A deep voice came from behind him. Nuru snapped out of his daydreaming to turn around. "I, ehm... I..." "He got lost, daddy," completed Malaika. Beside her was standing a mighty gray lion, his color a shade darker than his daughter's. "Lost?" he replied, approaching the caramel cub. "And where are you from exactly?" Nuru started shaking. "The Pridelands... uh... you're Majesty..." The King paused and sat down. "Hmm, never heard of it," he answered. The young cub became visibly disapointed. "But we will try our best to help you," he went on, trying to comfort the newcomer.

**Ta-daa! So Kiara and Kovu's cub reached the new Pride, which is ruled by another King, who is Malaika's father. I liked the name Malaika for a girl lion, and I learned that it meant Angel in Swahili. Chapter 4 is going to be uploaded a bit later, but stay tuned guys! Thanks for reading, btw :) it's appreciated.**


End file.
